Safe(r) Travels

MVA Shines A Check Engine Light On Recalls For Marylanders

Maryland is at the forefront of new technology that will help motorists catch faulty vehicles earlier and save lives.

The Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration (MDOT MVA) has helped to resolve over 376,000 vehicle safety recalls in Maryland as a result of a successful two-year pilot program.

MDOT MVA began their safety recall program in April 2018, becoming the first state to do so and to offer its residents a new and novel way to stay informed about their vehicles.

Normally, spam-like letters with potentially unverified information regarding auto recalls floods one’s mailbox often just to be discarded, leaving motorists in vulnerable positions.

The new program has been designed with the intention to test how well notifications about open vehicle safety recalls would be received if they were sent from a trusted—and attention-getting--source: The Motor Vehicle Administration. MDOT MVA worked with Cox Automotive Inc. to attain information on open vehicle safety recalls and then printed that information on the normal registration renewal notifications that come through mail and email roughly 60 days prior to the end of a motorist’s registration period. 

MDOT MVA sent registration renewal notices for 4,295,324 motorists wherein 1,018,214 of their vehicles had an open safety recall. Over two years 376,768 of the recalls were addressed after the owner was successfully notified.

The notices were sparking people to act who may not have been aware of a recall. It was noted that 47.8% of those recalls that were then fixed were at least two years old. Airbags, seatbelts and electrical systems were found to be the most common resolved problems.  

The program was started through a grant from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and will continue indefinitely. Already having an impact, the program is expected to continue to improve the safety of Maryland drivers.

“Notifying Marylanders about safety recalls as part of the registration renewal process is an extension of MDOT MVA’s mission to make our roadways safer for everyone,” said MDOT Secretary Greg Slater. “This ongoing partnership between MDOT, NHTSA and the private sector will save lives.”